How important is London to the Fintech industry?

London’s image as the home of the startup has made the city a hub for the best talent.

Over the last decade there has been a surge in co-working spaces across the capital and we are seeing the government turn its attention heavily towards computer science education.

According to recent figures from Accenture and CB Insights, the growth in UK fintech investment over the last five years has been over 2000%, more than the rest of Europe, Silicon Valley and the rest of the world combined.

More recently, and since the vote to leave the European Union in June, the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has focussed his attention on building links across the world.

But how important is London to the Fintech industry? Here we outline our thoughts, and provide some advice for businesses thinking about innovation in the financial services sector.

The short answer is very.

But if you want to understand how important the city is to the industry, just look at five important factors:

1) The Number of Innovation Exhibitions and Conferences Held in London, and Their Increasing Popularity:

London now plays host to hundreds of fintech events every year, including the Innovation Summit, due to take place at the end of September.

The Fintech industry is being represented there with a talk on Blockchain.

The innovation of Blockchain has helped revolutionise financial services because of its time-stamping technology that maintains a continuously growing list of records, and because these records are secured from tampering and revision.

Industry experts will be looking at how this technology can further transform financial services.

The sheer amount of events has increased significantly too- with more than 250 at this years London Technology Week, surpassing a previous record of 228.

At its launch in 2014, London Technology Week had around 30,000 attendees, and the same week earlier this year saw a jump to almost 45,000.

This huge boom in conferences and events in London highlights the importance of the tech sector.

2) The Mayor of London’s Attitude:

Under the previous Mayor of London Boris Johnson, an International Business Programme was launched, with the aim of driving global growth for 800 of London’s SMEs.

The programme was continued by the new Mayor Sadiq Khan, and as part of this he has been on a delegation with technology firms, including representatives of the fintech industry, on a visit to North America.

3) The Government’s Attitude:

The government has taken a much more proactive approach to the emerging industries, including technological innovation, over recent years.

In 2014, England became the first country in the world to ensure that children at primary and secondary schools are taught coding.

The new curriculum emphasises computer science, and includes how computers work along with the basics of programming.

Additionally, with technology representing 10% of UK GDP, and predicted to rise, the government is likely to continue to focus its attention on education.

4) The View Of Independent Commentators:

In early 2016, a report by Ernst & Young ranked Britain as the leading Fintech centre in the world.

Even when compared against areas like Silicon Valley and countries like Hong Kong Britain is ranked number one.

5) The True Impact of the Brexit Vote:

In the run up to the referendum in June it was rumoured that a leave vote would be detrimental to the UK’s fintech sector, and overall financial industry, but three months on there is little sign of this.

In fact, according to Innovate Finance CEO Lawrence Wintermeyer, there have been very few visible signs that fintech investment has slowed since the vote.

It’s clear that London, and the UK as a whole, is vital for the fintech industry and plays its part in worldwide innovation, but to ensure companies, in the financial sector in particular, innovate in the right ways, it’s always best to consult a team of experienced innovators.

Here at Trusek we use an approach that puts you in control of your project.

About Trusek

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